A Mirror into the Past
by Cornwall Writes
Summary: Astoria wants to look into her future, but the spell goes wrong and she gets a direct link to the past. More specifically, to Tom Riddle's Head Boy dorm room. Will this change her present?
1. Chapter 1

Astoria Greengrass was good at magic. She always had been. It seemed to flow from her fingers with an ease her classmates envied. She could learn spells as easily as others learnt their mother tongue. That's why she couldn't work out why this spell had failed so spectacularly.

It was supposed to give her a glimpse into her future. She didn't entirely believe in Divination but she was curious. It was her seventeenth birthday and her sister had just got engaged and she wanted to know _something_. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back, and Astoria was more than willing to take the risk.

The spell was easy. Ridiculously so. A couple of words in Latin and some hand gestures. Nothing she hadn't been doing for years. She mouthed the words as she faced the mirror. She had barely started it when the doors burst open and Daphne came running in.

"Tory!" Her face was pink with excitement, and Astoria bit back her sigh. "Tory, I've got something to ask you."

Astoria turned from the mirror, giving Daphne her full attention as she kept walking closer. "What is it, Daph?"

"Will you be my maid of honour?" Grabbing her hands, Daphne seemed to shine with happiness, and Astoria nodded before she knew what she'd done. "Oh thank you, thank you! Mummy and I are starting to plan it now, but I wanted to ask you first." She leaned forward and kissed Astoria's cheek, twirling and leaving the room before Astoria could reply.

Smiling bemusedly, she turned back to the mirror. She started the spell again, managing to finish it without interruption this time. But nothing happened. She frowned at her reflection, picking up the book and scanning the page. It should have changed to show her a moment of her future. There was nothing on what to do if it didn't work.

Astoria peered at the mirror. It looked the exact same, but she had an urge to poke it and see what happened. Her finger tapped it lightly and nothing happened immediately, prompting a relived sigh. But as she moved her finger further back, her reflection began to shift, swirling like water in a sink until she was unrecognisable. She stood, horror creeping onto her face, as the mirror started to calm down and slow the twisting.

When it was finally clear, her mouth was hanging open slightly. She shut it quickly, years of being told off catching up with her, but she was just as shocked. A boy about her age was standing with his back to the mirror. He seemed to be in school uniform, but the robes hung on his shoulders with a grace she hadn't seen from anyone in her year. His dark hair was highlighted by the fire burning steadily in front of him, lifting it from just black to a more nuanced tangle that Astoria wanted to bury her hands in.

"Abraxas. Next time, just ask her out, or I'll do it." Astoria had read about attractive voices, but she'd never heard one before. This boy had one that could make your knees weak.

Another boy moved into view, his angular face twisted as he pushed his hands through his hair. "You'll ask her out for me?" He collapsed into a chair, and Astoria guessed that he was Abraxas.

"No. I'll ask her out for me." She could hear amusement in the first boy's voice, and she giggled slightly. She couldn't help it.

Abraxas nearly fell out of his chair as he tried to stand while grabbing his wand out of a pocket. "Who was that?"

Astoria got a look at the other boy's face as he turned to face her, and she nearly gasped. He was as attractive as his voice suggested. "I think it came from her, Abraxas." He smiled slightly, more amused than his friend.

Abraxas came over, his wand outstretched. "Who are you and how did you get into the mirror?"

Astoria frowned at him. "That's not very polite."

"One could argue that appearing unannounced in our mirror isn't very polite either." The attractive boy stepped forward, his eyes curious as he studied her and the mirror. "Would you mind answering my friend's questions, regardless of how rude he was?"

Astoria sniffed slightly, but nodded. "My name is Astoria Greengrass. What are your names?"

Abraxas frowned. "Greengrass? Are you related to-?"

The other boy cut him off. "My name is Tom Riddle, and this is my friend Abraxas Malfoy. May we inquire as to how you got into our mirror, fair maiden?"

Astoria tried not to blush. No one ever complimented her. "I cast a spell on the mirror, but I think it went wrong. It should have ended by now." Something triggered a memory in her head, and she frowned again. "Sorry, did you say Abraxas _Malfoy_?"

"Yes, that's me. Heard of me?" Abraxas looked like he couldn't help the cocky grin that crossed his face, and Astoria tried not to smile at him.

Tom tilted his head to one side. "You know, Arcturus and I got drunk a few weeks ago, and I asked him about his family. He has a few distant cousins, but no one the same age as him. I'm guessing you're about 17?" Astoria nodded, and a satisfied gleam flashed in Tom's eyes. "Well then, Miss Greengrass, would you mind telling us how you're related to Arcturus Greengrass?"

"He's my grandfather. How-how do you know him?" Astoria's mind was racing, and she gasped suddenly. "Of course! But how?"

"I'm presuming your spell had something to do with time?" Tom stepped forward again, curiosity sparking behind his words, his body subconsciously angling itself so that Abraxas wasn't as included.

Abraxas frown deepened. "Excuse me, what exactly is going on here?"

Astoria glanced at him. "Time travel." She turned her attention back to Tom. "Yes, I was trying to get a glimpse into my future. It seemed simple enough." She explained what had happened, both of them ignoring Abraxas and his ever growing concern and confusion.

"May I ask whether you've ever heard of me in your time?" Tom's voice was carefully calm, but Astoria recognised the stress beneath it.

She shook her head. "I'm sorry, no. Are you thinking of going into politics?"

Tom hesitated. "Not quite, no."

Abraxas stepped forward. "Tom, no. We have no idea who this girl is, or who she works for. She could be an illusion by Dumbledore to discover our plans."

"Dumbledore? That old fool?" Astoria scoffed. "Why would I be on his side? He's dead anyway, Lord Voldemort ordered his death last June."

Tom sucked in a breath. "Lord Voldemort killed Dumbledore?"

"You know him?" Astoria was confused. "I thought he was younger than that. He's only recently resurrected, he died before I was born. And no, he only ordered it."

There was a long pause before either of the boys spoke again, and Astoria wondered what she had said wrong. Eventually, Abraxas spoke to her. "Perhaps you better tell us more. Can you come through?"

Astoria hesitated, and Tom saw it in her face. "You don't have to right now, just move the mirror to a more comfortable place and we'll talk some more. I think I'd like to get to know you a little better, dear Astoria."

Astoria blushed slightly. "I'll take it to the upstairs sitting room, hardly anyone uses it." She reached for the mirror, but Tom spoke again.

"Oh, and Astoria? I'd like this to stay between us for now. No reason for everyone to know about this little secret."


	2. Chapter 2

Months had passed. She had first started talking to Tom and Abraxas on her birthday, a few days before Christmas, and by the time she had to go back to Hogwarts they had devised a way for her to take a smaller mirror with her so they could keep talking. Every night, she would cast a silencing charm around her bed and chat with the boys for an hour or two.

Abraxas finally asked out the girl, Cassiopeia Nott, and Astoria told Tom privately that she was glad he had, because history was following the right course. Abraxas was present for their talks less and less but Astoria was secretly glad. She enjoyed talking to Tom, who was as smart as he was handsome and devilish to boot. She hadn't thought she would want that in a partner but Tom was perfect in every way.

After two months he told her his future plans. "I feel closer to you than anyone else, Tory. I have to tell you something." He had paused, and Astoria held her breath for a moment. Was this a declaration of love? "I am Lord Voldemort."

Silence reigned for uncountable minutes and Tom would have fidgeted if he was that kind of person. Eventually, he spoke again. "Tory? Are you okay?"

Astoria frowned slightly. "You're going to have to change a few things this time."

Tom was stunned. "Pardon?"

"When you take over. Clearly the timeline is already changed, so why not encourage the changes for the better? You would be better not trying to create an army, or trying to take power."

"What should I do?" Astoria was too busy thinking to notice Tom's stunned tone, and she reached for the notebook she kept in a drawer in her bedside table.

"You have most of the pureblood families under your sway already?" He nodded, and she scribbled it down. "So you control most of the Wizengamot through them. Really, you'd be best…" The conversation dissolved into politics, and Tom recovered enough to participate fully. He realised later that that was the point where he fell in love.

From that point on, Astoria noticed a change in his behaviour. He was sweeter, more attentive to her moods, more annoyed at those who upset her. She told him how awful school was under his Death Eaters and he made promises to keep things under better control. He was the perfect boyfriend, albeit stuck in a mirror.

As his eighteenth birthday rolled around, he got slightly more distant. More books appeared on his desk, but he started pushing them aside so she couldn't read the titles. She got anxious that he was keeping something huge from her, and threw herself into her schoolwork, desperate to prove that she was still smart. Relationships might fail, but magic would always be there for her.

The morning before his eighteenth birthday, Astoria was woken by a hand shaking her shoulder, and she grumbled slightly.

"Hestia, I don't have a class this morning, I told you yesterday." Astoria mumbled into her pillow.

A low, male laugh surprised her. "I'm not sure who Hestia is, but I'm glad you don't have a class this morning." Astoria sat up immediately, surprised to see Tom leaning against her bedpost.

"Tom!" She squealed, throwing her arms around him. They hugged for a long moment, both of them taking the time to enjoy the feel of the other for the first time. "But Tom, how?"

Tom released her slightly, taking her hand in his. "I've been researching like a demon the past few weeks, trying to find a way for us to travel through the mirror. I found one a couple of days ago, and I tested it with a few things before making the journey myself." He looked so proud of himself, and Astoria hugged him again.

"Oh, Tom! You've no idea how glad I am to finally be able to touch you." She whispered into his collar. He pulled back again, lifting her chin slightly and pulling her closer.

"Astoria, may I ask for an early birthday present?" She nodded, her breath coming faster already. "Would you kiss me?"

"Yes." The word passed from her lips to his as he finally connected them and she felt her bones melt. The kiss held the sweetness of something new mixed with the sensation of coming home after a long, long journey. It lasted for a moment or two, and when they finally parted, she could see the same emotion in his eyes.

"Astoria, Tory, darling, come with me." His voice had a pleading note she hadn't heard before as he spoke between peppering her face with kisses. "Come back with me and live with me. Help me create the world we've been planning."

She sighed with happiness but felt a frown forming. "Oh, Tom, I wish I could, but I can't just leave."

He tugged her closer still, sitting down so she fell into his lap. "Why not? I know you have a family but your grandfather is desperate to see you, and I need you, darling."

Her head rested on his shoulder, mind tumbling. Would she be missed that much? Yes, her family would be sad, but her parents had always encouraged her to follow her heart. Could she follow it back 50 years?

"I think I – Oh, I just don't know! It's so sudden." Tears welled at the thought of abandoning her entire life, but even starting to think of never being with Tom hurt her somewhere deep in her chest, and she knew the answer already. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!"

He kissed her again, and her stomach flipped with nerves. The kiss ended but he didn't move back, his lips brushing hers. "I love you."

Her final nerves vanished as he spoke, and she kissed him quickly. "I love you too." She kissed him again, long and deep, before standing. "I need to write to my parents, explain what is happening."

Tom grabbed her wrist, suddenly hesitant. "Don't tell them too much, they might not understand."

Astoria shrugged. "They already sort of know about you, so I'll say we had to go suddenly and I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye in person, and I'll explain later. If we can get a person through time, I'm sure I can send a letter every so often."

Tom laughed as she lifted a piece of paper and a quill. "Oh my darling, clever girl. We will easily find a way. We need to hurry though, I'm not sure how well time will react to two Tom Riddle's in one timeline."

Astoria wrote her letter quickly, leaving it on her pillow, with another note for her roommates so they would know she left. "Are any of my clothes suitable for the 1940s, or should I leave most of them?"

"Bring them, so no one suspects why you didn't take them, but I asked Cassie to give you some until we can go out and get a proper fitting."

She smiled slightly, quickly filling a suitcase of clothes and then shrinking it so it could fit in her pocket. "So, Tom, are we ready to go?"

Tom nodded, standing and taking her hand. "Let's go." He kissed her again as he waved his wand, wordless casting the spell to take them back to his time.


End file.
